| OCR Text |
Show 1866.] DR. J. E. GRAY ON TWO NEW CORALS. 27 HOMOPHYTON. Coral arborescent, rather flabellate, furcately branched ; branches subcylindrical, elongate; axis wood-like, soft, formed of numerous spicula, intermixed with a cellular substance; bark thin, with a smooth external surface; the cells of the polypes forming five longitudinal series of compressed tubercles, those of the neighbouring series alternating on the ends of the younger branches, becoming further apart, more irregularly distributed, and scarcely elevated in the older part of the branches. This genus differs from Paragorgia of Milne-Edwards (Coralliers, i. p. 191) in the axis being of a uniform cork-like texture, without any tubes or spongy cavities. Fig. 2. Homophyton gattyice. HOMOPHYTON GATTYICE. The coral erect, sub flabellate, irregularly furcately branched; the branches long, subcylindrical, with sinuous grooves on the surface running between the polype-cells, which are scarcely raised above the general surface of the bark ; the terminal branches rather slender, elongate, pentangular, with deep grooves between the oblong, rather compressed polype-cells ; the bark dark red, when dry; the axis yellow. Hab. The sea, near the Cape of Good Hope (Br. Rubidge). I have named this species after Mrs. Alfred Gatty, so well known for her fondness for natural history, and her interesting ' Parable of Nature,' and other works. |
